It can be tough to keep up with the changes in the digital marketing industry, especially when you add SEO to the mix. Worried about the next version of a Panda or Penguin update? Luckily, there’s an easy way to stay current on the latest trends and best practices, all in 140 characters or less. That is, it’s easy if you know which SEOs to follow on social media. More specifically, you need to know the experts you should follow on Twitter if you want to catch up with the latest SEO news and expected developments and how to apply them to your business.
Who Are These People?
We didn’t just pull names out of a hat to compile this list. Marketing guru/entrepreneur/author Josh Steimle compiled a list of the best SEO pros to follow on Twitter back in 2016, and his colleague Adam Akers recently updated the list for 2017.
The criteria included a high number of Twitter followers, as well as available information that would benefit business owners, digital marketers, and anyone else whose business is impacted by SEO. These days, of course, that’s practically everyone.
Drumroll Please… Our Top Ten SEOs on Twitter
Using Steimle and Akers’ lists as a starting point, we’ve compiled our own list. It’s somewhat subjective, but we hope it’s no less useful for that. Whether you’re a digital marketer, content writer, or just a civilian who’s curious how this stuff works, each of the following are worthy of their… following.
Matt Cutts @mattcutts
Website: MattCutts.com
Trying to get Google to disclose their secret SEO sauce is like trying to get KFC to reveal those eleven herbs and spices. Luckily, we’ve got Matt Cutts. He’s no longer with Google, having moved on to the US Digital Service, but the man still knows whereof he speaks. We’re sure he’s signed an ironclad nondisclosure agreement or three, but his opinions and insights are a tremendous help if you’re making sense of SEO.
Danny Sullivan @dannysullivan
Website: DannySullivan.com
Sullivan was a tech journalist in the earliest days of the web. That background, and his status as the co-founder of Third Door Media — which gave the world both Marketing Land and Search Engine Land — have made him the go-to pro for countless media stories and books touching on Google and SEO. When he has something to say about SEO, people listen.
Aleyda Solis @aleyda
Website: AleydaSolis.com
Founder of SEO consultancy Orainti, Aleyda Solis provides her expertise to clients in Europe and the Americas, especially those learning how to optimize for an international audience. Both Entrepreneur and Forbes have featured her as a talent worth watching, and her Twitter feed is a great place to stay up-to-date on the latest SEO developments.
Mark Traphagen@marktraphagen
Website: stonetemple.com
Traphagen’s customary bailiwick — he’s the Senior Director of Brand Evangelism at Stone Temple Consulting, best known for his social media expertise — may seem like an odd choice here. However, his deep knowledge of content marketing and an approach that emphasizes the “experience” part of user experience, ensure you won’t forget some other important pieces of the SEO puzzle.
Julie Joyce @JulieJoyce
Website: linkfishmedia.com
Link building won’t stop being controversial, or confusing, any time soon. However, Joyce — head of Link Fish Media — draws on fifteen years’ experience in quality link-building, de-mystifying the process and giving her legion of followers useful tips on doing it right.
Bill Slawski @bill_slawski
Website: seobythesea.com
If you’ve ever been caught short by a Google algorithm change, you probably wish you had someone like Bill Slawski in your corner. Slawski’s talent is picking apart the particulars of Google patents in plain English. Not only does that help his many followers understand what goes on behind the curtain, it also equips them to adapt to the changes that follow. He’s also known for a healthy give-and-take with his followers.
Chuck Aikens @chuckaikens
Website: v9seo.com
Chuck Aikens founded Volume Nine SEO in 2006 and joined Twitter a year later. During that time, his thousands of tweets have covered not only SEO, but also other areas that impact site traffic, including social media, advertising, UX, site audits, and user education. He’s also quick to pass on other users’ insights.
Adam Sherk @seosmarty
Website: seosmarty.com
A serial entrepreneur, Ann Smarty is the founder of many successful internet startups. She’s leveraged the knowledge gained from those experiences to power a thriving SEO consultancy, and teaches short-form courses on topics as varied as reputation management and creating viral content. Her Twitter feed is as varied as her background.
Lukasz Zelezny @Lukasz Zelezny
Website: zelezny.uk
Somewhere amid writing books and articles, traveling the world, and being a regular fixture on the lecture circuit, Lukasz Zelezny consults on search, social media, and content marketing. While he’s well-versed in the technical side of SEO, he’s a long-time advocate for the kind of on-page SEO practices that practically anyone can understand and put to good use.
Neil Patel @neilpatel
Website: NeilPatel.com
Patel’s experience and influence is wide reaching. Founder of KISSmetrics, Crazy Egg and Quick Sprout, his client base has included small businesses and household names alike. His skill set, which touches on investing, content marketing, e-commerce, SEO, social media, and entrepreneurship, initially seems scattershot on paper. However, it actually makes Patel required reading for smaller businesses and solopreneurs who all too often find themselves wearing too many hats.
Connect With Us
Your business faces dozens of challenges on a day-to-day basis. One small change to your social media diet — following people whose experience and insight can help your business in tangible ways, fast — can pay bigger dividends than keeping up with the Kardashians. Who among us couldn’t use that?
Who’s on your Top Twitter SEOs List? Should you be on our next list? Let us know @UpCityInc.
